Pika 1.5 adds new Pikaffects: crumble, dissolve, deflate, ta-da!

Pika a.k.a Pika Labs or Pika AI, the Palo Alto, California-based startup that has raised $55 million to disrupt video production with its video AI models of the same name, is further expanding the free special effects users can access through its web-based AI image-to-video generator.

Pika 1.5, its latest AI video model, now includes the ability to crumble, dissolve, deflate and “ta-da” video subjects — the last of these essentially making a video subject disappear behind a cloth.

Users can simply upload an image to the site and Pika 1.5 will turn it into a video with a corresponding animation. The user guides which animation is used by selecting it from a button beside the “Image” attachment icon (paperclip) labeled “Pikaeffect” with a magic wand beside it.

The new AI powered special effects — or “Pikaffects, in the company’s parlance — join six others previously unveiled earlier this month: Explode, squish, melt, crush, inflate and “cake-ify,” the latter of which turns any uploaded still image into an “is it cake?” video where the answer is a resounding “yes!”

Unfortunately, VentureBeat has been unable to use the new effects yet as when we attempted, the site said “We’re experiencing high demand right now (how flattering)!”

Nonetheless, as the AI landscape evolves, Pika’s unique approach to video manipulation sets it apart from the growing field of AI-driven content generation.

While Pikaffects cater to users seeking creative transformations, traditional features like lip-syncing and AI sound effects remain accessible on the earlier Pika 1.0 model. Paid subscribers have the flexibility to switch between Pika 1.5 and 1.0, depending on their project needs.

Where Pika came from

Pika Labs, co-founded by former Stanford AI researchers Demi Guo and Chenlin Meng, first launched its AI video platform in late 2023. The company has rapidly scaled, reaching over half a million users in less than a year.

Unlike many AI video platforms that focus primarily on realism, Pika takes a different route by prioritizing creative manipulation.

These effects enable users to reshape video subjects in ways that are not just visually impactful but also technologically intriguing, offering hands-on AI practitioners a sandbox for experimentation.

For professionals managing machine learning models or integrating new AI tools, Pika Labs’ latest features could present new opportunities to deploy innovative content solutions.

The platform allows the quick application of effects through a user-friendly interface while still enabling deeper integration via text-to-video (T2V) and image-to-video (I2V) workflows.

Subscription pricing

To accommodate a diverse range of users, Pika Labs offers four subscription plans:

1. Basic (Free): This entry-level plan provides 150 monthly video credits and access to the Pika 1.5 features, making it suitable for casual users or those curious about the platform.
2. Standard ($8/month, billed yearly): With 700 monthly credits, access to both Pika 1.5 and Pika 1.0, and faster generation times, this plan offers more flexibility for content creators looking to produce more videos.
3. Pro ($28/month, billed yearly): This plan includes 2,000 monthly credits and even faster generation times, catering to users with higher content demands.
4. Unlimited ($76/month, billed yearly): Designed for power users, this plan allows unlimited video credits, offering the fastest generation times available on the platform.

The updated credit structure (15 credits per five-second clip) allows for a scalable approach to video generation. The various subscription tiers accommodate different needs, from light experimentation to intensive production, ensuring that both individual contributors and larger teams can find an affordable solution.

These flexible pricing options make Pika Labs accessible to smaller teams and larger organizations alike, allowing AI engineers to manage costs while experimenting with new video capabilities.

Attempting to differentiate amid a crowded sea of competitors

The move by Pika to further differentiate its video AI model from competitors such as Runway, Luma, Kling, and Hailuo comes amid intensifying competition in the nascent industry, and follows Adobe’s move this week at its MAX conference in Miami Beach, Florida, to begin offering a preview of its own “enterprise safe” AI video model Firefly Video, trained on licensed data.

Pika, like most other generative AI startups, has not disclosed its precise training dataset. Other rivals such as Runway have been sued by artists for alleged copyright infringement over training AI models on data scraped from the web, including many other artworks and videos, and likely many copyrighted ones. That case, which also names AI image generator Midjourney and Stability, is moving forward toward a trial but has yet to be decided.